I Am NOT A Damsel In Distress!
by Jen27ny
Summary: Temari, the feisty and self confident princess of Suna, should marry the prince of Konoha, a guy she hasn't even met yet. But not only that: She and her brothers should move to Konoha to get familiar with their culture. Now she not only has to deal with the prince but with his friends too. Furthermore there is a group of rebels who plot to fall the king./Curses and voilence!
1. Bye Bye Sun!

**Masashi Kishimoto owns Naruto and all the characters**

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**Chapter One: Bye Bye Sun!**

_Once upon a time in a kingdom far, far away lived a king. He was a strict ruler and a powerful warrior, but in spite of that the folk loved him. The king had three children. The eldest was a fair maiden, called - _

Oh, cut that crap!

_But I - _

Nobody wants to hear that, okay? All this once-upon-a-time-blablabla-crap is boring. That's for little kids in diapers who should just fall asleep. Just read the words "once upon a time" and they fell asleep immediately. Why do you thing every bedtime story starts with these words?

_It's the usual way to start a fairy tale. _

Is this a usual fairy tale?

_No?_

No, it isn't. So don't you dare to tell it like that. And for the record, I take it as an insult if you call me a fair maiden again.

**Yeah, feisty witch would be more specific. **

Oh, shut up, Kankuro! I'm not a witch!

**You're right, sorry, my fault. I mistook w for b. Silly me! **

…

**Ow! Damn, Temari! Why did you hit me?**

'Cause you're talking bullshit again.

_Can I please continue to do my job now? _

No, you're fired.

_What?! _

You heard me. I'll tell the story. Now piss off, will ya?

**Please Temari, don't do it. It should be an ****_interesting_**** story, not plain boring.**

Can't you just shut up and sit in a corner like Gaara is doing it?

**No. I'm far too handsome to be ignored. **

You mean far too stupid and annoying. Now go away and play with your dolls, will you? I'm kinda busy telling an awesome story. And don't you _dare _to make any comment!

So, let's start for real now!

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I love the sun. Not because it's warm and bright – seriously, I live in the desert, the heat is nothing we seek here – but because it's powerful. It's the center of the solar system and without the sun we would all die. On the other hand, it can destroy us all when the sun is swallowing the earth. As you see, the sun is pure power.

I always wanted to see myself as the sun, metaphorical speaking of course. A source of light, warmth and power for the people and kinda inapproachable, because if you are too close, I would destroy you. But if you turn away from me, you will be doomed too.

Sadly, I wasn't the sun.

My father was.

My father: the Yondaime Kazekage, better known as the king of Sunagakure. Or as I like to call him: the biggest douchebag ever.

Sure, he was the most powerful man in the country and all – never made an exception, never made a mistake and even if he made a mistake, he took full credit for it and did what has to be done. Since the country hasn't gone bankrupt until now, I assume he did his job well. Didn't change the fact that he was a douchebag.

His priorities were clear. First: the power of the country. Second: the common good. Third: his image. Fourth: Money. Fifth: … I don't know, probably to have a wrinkle-free suit.

What? His children weren't in his Top Five of his priorities? _Gasp_. I'm shocked!

No, not really.

You see, the Douchebag wasn't always like that. There was a time when he was actual like a almost loving father. But then mom died and everything changed.

Enough of that. Don't want you all to be super depressed, so let's move on.

I was lying on my balcony, enjoying the sun. Since I couldn't be the sun, I could at least absorb all her warmth and power. One of the things I love about Suna. There is always sun.

The last days had been stressful. School – yes, even though we are royal we have to go to school. It. Sucks. – started again, we had to attend some fancy balls that were held for the honor of Suna or an ambassador or insert-reason-here and we had our martial arts classes. Yeah, we're all doing martial arts and we are even able to use a gun, although the Doughebag didn't allowed us to have a gun. He said it's important for us to protect ourselves. I'm sure he just wanted to save the money for too many bodyguards. But thanks to that we can kick every ass we want – and that is a damn good feeling.

But now it was Sunday, our usual day off. No homework, no classes, no royal-duties. And usually no Doughebag, since he had some much work to do. Just the sun, my sun lounger, the music and me. It. Was. Perfect.

As always, moments like these didn't last very long.

"Temari," a voice behind me said. I turned the volume down and looked over my shoulder to Baki, our girl-for-everything. He isn't our Butler or anything, in fact he is the chief of our security, but he had been around us for like forever. He taught us our first fighting moves, helped us with our homework, practiced with us for our driving licenses and inspected and frightened the boys who wanted to go out with me. He even tried to help with my … you know, special girl problems, but since it was deadly embarrassing, we both agreed to never talk about it. To tell the truth he was more like a father than the Douchebag could ever be.

Baki was in his mid-thirty's, tall and had a tanned skin and a bald head. A little button was plugged in his ear and you could see the wire disappear in his collar. He was dressed in a simple button-up shirt that wasn't stuck in his dark pants; he wasn't a fan of those dark suits the security has the wear, so he preferred something more casual when he didn't have to attend to anything fancy.

"What's up, Baki?" I asked.

"Dinner starts in fifteen minutes. You may want to change into something more … suitable."

I looked down at me and my dark purple bikini. What? If you want to bask in the sun, you can't wear a pullover and long pants. "I think I'm looking very suitable, thank you very much," I said, pushing my sunglasses from my head on my nose. "It's not like my brothers haven't seen me wearing a bikini before."

"The king will be part of the dinner. I'm sure he would be more than pleased if you would wear something more than … that."

"WHAT?!" Immediately I was at my feet and looked at him, shocked. Baki just stared back. "Why is he having dinner with us? It's Sunday! He isn't suppose to have dinner with us! He is suppose to be in his office, behind his table, having a lot of paperwork and not giving a damn about us!"

"He said there are a few things to discuss."

Oh, that weren't good news. If he joins us to dinner because "there are a few things to discuss" it's a nicer term for "someone of you did something really bad that affected me and now all of you have to pay".

"What are these … things?" I asked, hoping I could figure out who caused the trouble. I can't remember doing anything that concerned him. At least not in the last seven days.

"I'm not familiar with the details. Please, Temari. Just change your clothes and behave yourself, okay?" He seemed kinda tired. I bet he knew what all this was about, but he didn't want to tell. I nodded nevertheless. "Thank you," he said relieved and left.

A sigh escaped my lips as I walked inside. That would be a really difficult and annoying dinner …

Living in a the royal palace definitely has it's benefits. Having your own big bedroom with everything you need, a private balcony, a large walk-in wardrobe – actually it's more like a dressing room – and your own bathroom, which is probably the most valuable one. Just the thought of sharing a bathroom with my brothers sent me cold shivers down my spine. I'm pretty sure they're feeling the same way.

My bedroom was decorated with fans. I just love fans and I'm collecting them since I'm seven years old. After all this years I stopped counting them, but I have them all: large ones, smaller ones, blue, red, green, purple and from every region of the world. Can't say why I love them so much though.

Ten minutes later I was on my way to the dining hall. Like Baki asked me to, I changed into something that shows less skin. If you're thinking about one of these ball gowns all the disney-princesses are wearing with a lot of quillings, bows and all that stuff that little girls love, then I'm really sorry to disappoint you. Just because I am a princess doesn't mean I act or dress like them. Thought you figured that out since I'm taking martial arts classes. Plus leather jackets just suit me too damn well. I settled with a pair of dark jeans and a purple tank top.

One of the employees opened the door to the dining hall for me. Sure, at first it was kinda fun to have everyone doing everything for you. Now it's only annoying. I'm nineteen years old and, yes, I'm able to open doors on my own, for Kami's sake!

Like always I was the last one to arrive. In my defense I want to note that I was on time. The other ones were just earlier.

The other ones. That were my two younger brothers and the Doughebag himself.

Kankuro sat on the right, wearing his black sleeveless shirt and dark pants. Even though he was only a year younger than me, he was taller than me and that annoys the hell out of me. He had an unpleasant expression on his face – probably because of the "few things to discuss". His face was painted with purple tattoos by the way. Yes, tattoos. In the face of a prince. The Doughebag had been furious as he saw it, but we all got one. Kinda like a … sibling-thing. Sadly it's the only thing we did as siblings – if anyone of you tell them I said that, you're dead! His brown hair was messy and his dark eyes shot me a nonchalant look.

While I was the lucky one who has the looks of our mother, Kankuro was the one with the looks of the Doughebag. Maybe that's why he got the tattoos in his face. The king sat at the end of the table, sitting perfectly still in his wrinkle-free suit. His hair was a bit lighter, but otherwise he just looked exactly like Kankuro. Or Kankuro looked like him – whatever you want to call it.

My other brother, Gaara, was sixteen years old, a redhead and had light green eyes. Like Kankuro he chose to have his tattoo in his face. On his forehead to be exact. It has the same color of his hair and was the symbol for love. No, not the heart, that would be ridiculous, but the Japanese symbol. By the way, my tattoo isn't in my face – just in case you were wondering. Although we live in the desert, his skin was really pale. Well, it's not like he is much of an outside-person. He was kinda … weird. Or messed up, that works fine too. Under his eyes were dark circles from his insomnia and he was kinda gawky. Two weeks ago he shaved off his eyebrows and they did grow again until now. Don't ask me why he did it – Gaara does a lot of weird things, but we didn't question it. After all he'd been through, he is allowed to do some weird things.

All in all you can say, we aren't the kind of princess and princes you might imagined.

"Temari," the Doughebag said and gestured me to sit down. "Please. We want to start dinner."

I sat down next to Kankuro, who didn't even looked at me but just stared at his empty plate. As soon as I sat, we got our food served. Looking back I couldn't remember what we were eating. I didn't had much of an appetite either. All my thoughts circled around "a few things to discuss". It wasn't until the dessert that the Doughebag decided to induct us into "a few things to discuss."

"There is a reason why I am having dinner with you today," he said. Kankuro still looked angry and Gaara was wearing his emotionless-mask. It works even better on him since he has no eyebrows. "It concerns all of you, but especially you, Temari. And let me tell you this right from the start: I do not tolerate any mistakes or disagreement."

"Just say it," I said.

"You are going to marry the prince of Konoha."

There were several things in my head which I could use to reply to that. However I didn't know where to start. Gaara and Kankuro exchanged looks before they both looked to me. The Doughebag noticed my loss of words and used that chance – really rare chance – to start talking again.

"I want to form a permanently bound between Suna and Konoha and the easiest and most effective way is a marriage. I assume, you know who the prince is, right?" A picture of spiky hair appeared in my head. I read an article about him a few weeks ago, but I couldn't remember any details. I shrugged. "Good. Next week we will fly to Konoha to meet him. You will attend a school there and - "

"Whoa, take a step back, will ya?" I said, finally organized my thoughts. The Doughebag looked angry, but I ignored it. Hell, I was angry myself. How could he dare to do something like that?! "You can't just marry me off to some guy! We don't live in the fucking middle age! I can marry whoever I want!"

"No, you cannot," he said without any emotion. "You are the princess of Suna and you have your duties. One of them is to care about the common good and forget about your own, selfish wishes. A bound between Konoha and Suna will increase the economic status of our country a lot. Do you want to see your subjects starving and losing their jobs because you want to marry some guy you have not even meet yet?"

"I'm sure there are other ways to form a bound without me marrying this weird prince-guy."

"As I told you, I will not tolerate and disagreement," he said. "Besides I already had a conversation with Konoha. They agreed. We will leave next Friday."

"I don't want to!" I screamed and smashed my forge in the table. The Doughebag just took a sip of his wine and ignored me. Furious I looked at my brothers, but they seemed to have a silent conversation with their eyes. "Are you just going to sit around and don't say a fucking word?"

"I have something to say," Kankuro said. He shot me a look before he looked to our so called _father_. "Why do Gaara and I have to attend a school in Konoha, if Temari is the only one getting married."

"Is that all you care about?" I screamed and got up so abrupt that my chair felt over. "I – your only sister – am forced to getting married and you don't want to go to school?" He shrugged. "A bit support once in a while would be more than welcomed, thank you very much!"

"Temari, calm down and sit down," the Doughebag said.

"I DO NOT WANT TO CALM DOWN! AND I ABSOLUTELY DO NOT WANT TO MARRY THE PRINCE!"

"Temari," a calm voice said. It was Gaara who looked at me. Suddenly all my anger was gone and was replaced by … well, it wasn't fear. But something similar, something uneasy. "Sit down, please. I want to know what our father has to say."

I sat down really slow. If anybody else would have asked me to sit down, I would most likely have thrown the knife in his face. But it was Gaara and Gaara was … well, you don't want to start a fight with him. The Doughebag watched me with a smirk on his face, but didn't even once glanced to Gaara. Their relationship was even more messed up then mine and his.

"You all will attend a special privat school in Konoha," he said. "Every child of every man who is even a bit important in Konoha goes to that school. On the school grounds is a college, too, so Temari you will not be the oldest. I expect from you to socialize – you do not know who might be the heir of a worldwide company or a future ambassador. But at the end of year, I want to know every little detail about everyone."

"You want us to spy on those kids, so you'll have some connections in the future?" Kankuro asked.

"Exactly."

"We are not doing it!" I said. "I'm not marrying that prince!"

"I don't play friends with some punks I don't even know!" Kankuro said. "I don't even know why you want all these connections. You are the king, not a businessman."

"It is always good to have some connections. You do not know when you need them," the Doughebag said.

"That's all bullshit! I don't want to - "

"I think it would be fun." I fell silent and looked at Gaara. He sit there, looking kinda stiff and not meeting any of our gazes. "I never had been in Konoha. And we can make friends and learn something about the culture. It would be interesting."

Of course Gaara would like it. He hasn't got many friends here in Suna. In fact, he has no friends. Everybody knows about him. They didn't bully him though – him being the prince and a talented martial artist – but they just … ignore him. Though he never said anything you can clearly see it's bothering him. Nobody likes to be treating like that.

But us going to Konoha would be a new start for him. They don't know about him and his past and his … problems. Maybe he can even find a few friends. It was a once-in-a-lifetime-chance for him and he knew it. The Doughebag would never allow Gaara to go to Konoha by himself.

Kankuro's eyes were on me. I knew he had the same thoughts as I do. He was willing to go to Konoha – for Gaara's sake. I was the only one making problems.

Hell, I didn't want to marry the prince! He is probably some kind of lazy, arrogant, sexist jerk or anything. I'm not exactly the reason for the sleepless nights of every boy in the world, but I know I could do better than that.

But Gaara … I wasn't an evil sister despite everything you may think. I do care for them. I looked at my youngest brother, whose eyes met mine. There was a glint of begging in them. He wanted to go.

Ah, damn. Whoever this prince was, I could deal with him.

"Fine," I said through my teeth. "I'll go to Konoha."

"Good," the Doughebag said with a complacent smile. "Since you agreed to come with us by choice" I snorted, but he ignored it. "It will make things so much easier. I expect you all to be ready on Friday." Then he rose and left the room. No _good night _or _it was nice having dinner with you _or anything else. He just left.

For several minutes, we sat there in silence. I was still beyond furious and I hated the idea of going to Konoha. I looked at Kankuro, who was still mad that he has to go to a new school, but neither me nor him said anything. Not as long as Gaara was in the same room.

"Thank you," Gaara said and rose from his chair. "I know you two don't want to -"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Kankuro interrupted him. "We want to go to Konoha. Right, sis?"

"Yeah," I said. "Totally. Will be so much fun." I didn't even try to sound excited.

Gaara did something that may could have been a smile, nodded goodbye and left. We waited until the door was shut before we sighed.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," Kankuro said.

"You? You think you're the one who did a sacrifice?" I asked.

"Uh, duh? I have to go to school there!"

"So do I. And I have to marry some guy or did you forgot that little detail?"

"Temari, shut up, okay?" Kankuro sighed again and got up. He stretched his arms before he decided to leave too. "As soon as this prince sees you, he will call off the wedding. I give him three days at the most. You are such a pain in the ass, he doesn't want to marry you."

"Thanks so much, dear brother."

"You're welcome. My point is: If Konoha calls off the wedding, they have to come up with a new plan for this permanently-bound thing. We can go home and everything will be like always." Without another word he left.

I was sitting at the table alone. Maybe Kankuro was right. If I'll get this prince to run away screaming, everything will turn out well. And I'm very good at annoying people, so that shouldn't be a problem. Besides I've never been in Konoha before.

This could turn out to be fun …

* * *

_Friday_

We were sitting in a black Bentley, looking more than annoyed and were on the way to our hotel. In the morning we left early to take the plane to Konoha. It was something in the afternoon now, but it felt like midnight. The Doughebag hat his own Bentley, while Kankuro, Gaara and I had to share the back of the car. Baki was in the front, next to the driver.

"When do we arrive?" Kankuro asked – for the fifth time in the last ten minutes. I could rip his head of his shoulders and Gaara almost growled.

Our mood wasn't good. You may have noticed it. Nobody of us was a morning-person and the flight had been boring and exhausting. Sharing so little space with my brothers for such a long time isn't an easy task. Hugging the sun would be easier. The thing I wanted the most now was a bit of privacy, but I would have to wait until we arrive at the hotel.

"We'll be there in a few minutes," Baki said.

"But -"

"Kankuro, shut up," I said. "You're damn annoying, you know that, right?"

"You're such a bitch, Temari."

"And you're an asshole."

"Temari, Kankuro, stop," Baki said and shot us a glare. "I know it was a long and exhausting day, but we will arrive in a few minutes. Wait until we are in the suite before you kill each other, okay? We don't want to cause an accident on our first day in Konoha, do we?"

"Fine," Kankuro mumbled.

I looked out of the window. Konoha was so … green and fresh. And that was not a compliment. I expect that Konoha would welcome us with rain or a storm – something that was so rare in Suna that I never seen that – but it didn't rain. It wasn't sunny neither. The sky was covered with thick, dark clouds and it wasn't as dry as in Suna. You could practically feel the moistness on your skin.

I already missed the sun and her heat.

Suddenly a familiar logo caught my eye. Oh, that would help to make my day better!

"Stop," I ordered. The driver shot Baki a questioning glare, but didn't stop. I rolled my eye and had to remind myself to stay calm. Baki was right – I didn't want to cause an accident right from the start. Wouldn't make a good first impression. "Just stop the damn car. I want a coffee, is that too much to ask for?"

"Oh, I want a coffee, too!" Kankuro said. "Please, can we have coffee? We hadn't had any good coffee since the morning." He was right. The coffee in the plane had been awful, apparently the Doughebag wanted to save money by buying cheap, bad coffee.

Baki sighed, but nodded. The car stopped and I jumped out of it. Just as I expected, the air was kinda clammy and it was cold. I snuggled deeper into my jacket as I crossed the street. Baki didn't follow me and I was really grateful for that. It was just a coffee shop and he knew I was able to handle myself. Beside, I didn't even know if anybody knew who I am.

A little bell rang as I opened the door and entered the shop. It wasn't big, but it was nice anyway. Kinda gave you a cozy feeling. There were a few tables where some customers were sitting and sipping at their drink. Some read some newspapers, some ate a piece of cake and some talked with the person sitting next to them. Not even one payed me any attention.

I made my way to the counter. A boy around Gaaras age stood behind it, looking extremely bored. His black ponytail made his face look like a pineapple and he had brown eyes. I wasn't sure if they worked though, since he didn't looked at me once, even as I stood right in front of him. From this close range I noticed that he was several inches taller than me. Not as tall as Kankuro, but still tall.

The boy still didn't looked up. Impatiently I tapped my nails against the counter, cleared my throat and shot him evil looks.

I was never the one with a lot of patient.

Finally he looked up. He even got the nerve to sigh! This boy! I gnashed my teeth. "Yes? How can I help you?" He sounded even more bored that he looked. Didn't think it was possible until now.

I stood with my hands on my hips and looked at him. "First of all, how about a bit more enthusiasm? Maybe then I would be in the mood to actual order anything."

"Since you came here, I assume you were in the mood to order something nevertheless. So just do it and don't complain about my mood, woman."

"Woman?" I screamed. Some of the customers looked up, kinda amused. Oh, I would show them just how amused _I _was. "Listen -" I looked at his name tag. "Listen, Shikamaru. You don't talk to me like that, did you understand me? You don't even know who I am, so if I were you, I would be more careful. Don't you dare to call me woman again. Ever."

"But you are a woman," he said nonchalantly. "You can't deny that."

This smartass. Of course I am a woman, but that wasn't the point! How could I ever thought _this _could make my day better? I should have sent Kankuro to get the coffee.

I opened my mouth to start the next lecture, but he interrupted me. That surprised me, to be honest. I didn't thought he would actual came up with the energy to do that. "Are you done now? Just order and leave. There are other customers who want to order."

I looked around, just to see nothing behind me. I was the only customer. As I turned back, I saw a mischievous glint in his eyes – no, that had to be a mistake. Boredom was the only expression this guy knew.

Out of the corner of my eyes I saw Baki. He stepped out of the car and looked in my direction, wondering why I was taking so long. Right, I had no time to fight with little boys who didn't even knew who they are messing up with. Besides it wasn't like I was going to see him another time. All I had to do was not visiting this shop and everything would be fine. Konoha was big enough.

"Give me a simple black coffee, a Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte, a White Chocolate Mocha, a Espresso Macchiato and four blueberry muffins." While the guy took my order, I fished a few dollars out of my purse and smashed them on the counter. He didn't blinked with an eye and started to make the coffees and gathered the muffins. As I left he didn't wished me a goodbye. Not that I expect anything else.

"Is everything alright?" Baki asked as I arrived the car. I nodded and handed him his Espresso Machhiato and a muffin. He nodded me thanks and took a sip.

"Yeah, sure," I said. "Just some annoying, disrespectful guy who didn't know who he was talking to. Nothing I couldn't handle."

"Okay." He sounded not entire convinced, but didn't said anything else and just opened my door. "Get in, we should start driving again. I don't want anyone recognize you before we arrive at the hotel."

I climbed in the car, next to Kankuro and Gaara. Kankuro took his Skinny Cinnamon Dolce Latte and I handed Gaara his White Chocolate Mocha. Yes, the black coffee was mine. I like them simple.

While we drank our coffees and ate the muffins, I looked out of the window. Back in Suna I did some research about the prince. His name was Naruto Uzumaki and his parents died shortly after his birth. The teacher and a supposedly a good friend of the former king took care of the throne and the business until the prince had the legal age to ascend the throne. There were a few articles about the prince causing trouble and what not, but I didn't payed much attention. I wasn't going to marry that guy anyway.

It started to rain. Gentle drops crackled on the roof of the car, wrapping us in a somewhat cozy atmosphere.

Damn, I miss the sun.

* * *

**That was the first chapter! Hope you had fun reading it :) So you liked it? Hated it? Leave me some reviews! :)**

**Next chapter will be Shikamaru's POV!**


	2. It's Not Worth The Trouble

**Masashi Kishimoto owns Naruto**

* * *

**Chapter 2: It's Not Worth The Trouble.**

**Shikamaru's POV**

As if my day wasn't troublesome enough _before _this bossy woman turned up at the shop.

She basically screamed trouble from the far, wearing a white mini-skirt, a purple tank-top and a leather jacket. Clearly she wasn't from Konoha or else she would had known that during this time of the year the weather was pretty bad. Her facial features were too exotic for Konoha, too. Her sun kissed skin, these teal eyes and her sandy-blond hair, which she wore in four ponytails. Nobody from Konoha looks like that.

And that's not necessarily a compliment.

Out of the corners of my eyes I watched her approached a black car. A tall man, who looked just as exotic as her, talked to her before she handed him a cup and climbed in the car. The more I thought about it, the more I had the feeling that her face was somewhat familiar. I couldn't point my finger on it where I could've seen her – not in Konoha obviously – or why she even looked familiar.

I sighed and looked back at the shop. It wasn't really busy since it was Friday and a lot of people where curious about all the foreign guests that are coming. Tomorrow night was a big party at the palace to the honor of the king of Suna and his children. For this opportunity a lot of ambassadors from other countries came, too. It's rare to see the king with his children, so there is quite a fuss about it.

Personally I think they are all overreacting. Honestly they are just some people like you and me. I'm a son of a nobleman but nobody cares about it, fewest myself. Yes, I know, it's shocking. Wouldn't believe it myself if it's not written in my birth certification. Apparently the Nara-family did some important things in the past – I didn't bother to know the details – so they got the all-time status of noblemen.

You're wondering why I work at a coffee shop when I'm a nobleman? Yeah, I'm wondering, too. But the answer is simple. My mother.

She thought I should do something else than watching clouds and sleeping. I don't know why I should do something else, really. It's everything I enjoy and I bother no one with it. However my mother thought it would help me to socialize more with other teenagers in my age. I think she is hoping that I would meet a girl while working and make her my future-wife. That's not gonna happen though.

Women are just too troublesome. Always talking, always giggling, spreading rumors who is dating insert-name-of-a-hot-guy-here and being jealous of each other. Of course not all women were like that. There are some shy girls who barley talk at all. And the worst of all: those bossy women, just like the girl a few minutes ago. I try to avoid them as much as I can. Ironically there are a lot of bossy women I have to deal with.

The bell jingled again, but I didn't bother to look up. I know who it was. The good news: My shift was over now. The bad news: I had to deal with yet another troublesome woman.

"Shikamaru," a high-pitched voice sing-song while my childhood-friend approached the counter. Without looking at her I started making her drink – a caramel flavored Latte with non-fat milk. "Hey! Don't I get a 'Hello Ino, nice to see you, you look fabulous today' ?"

"Hello Ino, nice to see you, you look fabulous today," I said nonchalantly and handed her the cup.

"Thanks," she said and flashed me a smile. She knows me since we're four years old – by now she is used to me and my boredom.

Ino Yamanaka was sixteen years old – just like me – and her life was based on fashion and beauty. Well, if your parents own the most successful flower-shop in the country, I guess you could turn out like that. Her blond, long ponytail reached her hip, her blue eyes were lined with mascara and eyeliner – I still hate her for make me remember every beauty-product that exists – and I think she was just as insane as the girl from earlier. I did mention that the weather was awful, right? So why did Ino wore a light blue dress? It didn't make any sense. Unless she wanted to flirt with boys of course.

"Ready to go?" she asked while sipping at her coffee.

"Tell me again why I'm doing this," I said and untied the apron I have to wear.

"Because we are friends, my dear Shikamaru. Besides I need some advice from a male." She shot me one really large smile. "It's not like you have any other plans, do you?"

Except for watching the clouds and sleeping? No, nothing, but Ino never accept a no.

"Why didn't you ask Chouji?" I asked. "He would love to come with you. Unlike me." The three of us – Ino, Chouji and me – were a trio since … well, we met. Chouji is one of the nicest guys on the whole planet and has a crush on Ino for a few years now. Sadly Chouji wasn't what Ino would call _hot_. And she only dates _hot guys. _

"But Chouji hasn't got a car" Ino said and walked to the door. "Are you coming now or what?"

I grabbed my things – that were basically my keys and wallet – and followed Ino. Of course she wanted me to drive to the boutique. The weather was awful and it could ruin her outfit. Now Ino might seem like some beauty-and-look-centred girl, but … okay, she kinda was beauty-and-look-centred, but she is a good friend, too. You just don't see it right from the start.

Ino already leaned against the doors of my silver Toyota. My mother thought I need to be down-to-earth and that's why I got a Toyota instead of a fancy car like other sons of noblemen. Not that I minded, I really do not care what my car looks like. It's just a vehicle and its only function is to bring me from my house to my school or the shop.

However Ino didn't think the same way – and she let me know it every single time.

"Can't you buy yourself a new car? I mean, you earn your own money and you can spend it for whatever you want."

"I think my car is okay," I said and unlocked it. "It drives, so it's okay."

"But a nicer car would suit me so much better. Maybe a nice Mini Cooper."

"You know, you can buy your own car. And I will definitely not buy a Mini Cooper." Ino rolled her eyes and we climbed in the car. "I mean, you did got your driving license, right?"

"Just start driving, you moron!"

* * *

Fifteen minutes later we were in Ino's favorite boutique, searching for dresses. Of course I didn't need a dress and apparently Ino's other fifty dresses weren't good enough. I didn't dare to ask why. It spared me a twenty minutes long speech at least.

I sat at a couch and waited while Ino talked with one of the sellers, discussing what kind of dress would fit her best.

You're wondering why she needs a new dress at all? I did mentioned the big party for the royals of Suna. We're invited. And when I say _we _I mean all of my friends and even more. It may seem strange, but after all it isn't. We're all attending Konoha finest school for children of rich or famous or noble families, Elite Private School of Konoha (short EPSK). Yeah, the school is pretty much exactly like its name. Fancy, elitist and really expensive. However it was a good place to socialize with the future CEO's of important companies or noble families. A lot of families see that as the best aspect of the school, next to the education and etiquette courses.

Naruto Uzumaki, the crown prince of Konoha and future king, is also attending EPSK and one of my closest friends. Not as close as Ino and Chouji, but still a really good friend. In fact I think he would be a good king someday. I would never admit it though. His ego and confidence is big enough without me pushing it. Since Naruto was hosting the whole party, he invited us all. Not that that was a problem, we are all more than qualified to be at the party.

"Honestly, can't you just pick another blue dress?" I asked as Ino throw away the third dress.

"Shikamaru, you need to take things like these more serious. There will be a lot of people and you have to make a good impression. You don't know who will be there. Maybe Shiho will come too! I'm sure she would be very _pleased _to see you in a new suit." A smug grin spread across her face and she dangled her eyebrows.

I sighed. "Ino, could you please stop that?"

"Stop what?"

"Assuming that Shiho and I are dating."

"Oh, that's what you said," Ino said, turned around and searched through the dresses again. "All I ever said is that Shiho likes you. And you did that science project, right? It was you who said you are dating."

"We are not dating."

"But why?" She turned around and looked at me with her big, blue eyes. To tell the truth she looked rather frustrated. Probably because I didn't do what she wanted me to do. In this case it was me declare my undying love for Shiho and live happily ever after with her. "You're always saying you want a simple girl. She is not as pretty as me of course, but I'm sure behind her big, nerdy glasses she is somewhat attractive. And if you straighten her frizzy hair, she would maybe -"

"Stop it," I growled. "Just buy a dress, so we can get out of here."

"Fine," she signed and turned around. I heard her mutter something under her breath but I didn't care.

Shiho was also a student at ESPK. Her grandfather was the founder of a really successful company that specialized on data research and decoding. Some day she should be the next CEO, but personally I think she is too shy. Her skills are amazing though – I know that since I worked with her – but her personality isn't right for the job.

Ino obviously thought that Shiho and me are meant to be together. Why? We were both smart.

Yes, it's another shocking fact about me. I'm smart. I'm good at chess and strategies. Some even call me a genius, but I didn't care. It's not like it changes anything.

However, back to the topic. I noticed that Shiho had a crush on me, because she is stuttering more when she is around me, her cheeks flushed and all those little things. She was nice and the most important thing: she wasn't one of those bossy women. The thing was, I just didn't had those feelings for her. You could say she wasn't my type, but I didn't even have a type. Everything I want, is a simple girl, not too pretty, not too ugly, a nice one who doesn't complain the whole time and shoves me around. Is that too much to ask for?

Half an hour later Ino still didn't found any dress. Apparently there were a lot of questions when you're buying a dress: Should it be short or full-length? A light blue or a dark blue? Straps or strapless? What shoes to wear? What jewelery would fit the best? What hair-do would look best?

In those moments, I was so happy to be a guy. A simple black suit and everything was okay.

I tried to sleep several times, but with Ino's blabbering and the annoying music from the stereos it was kinda hard. I couldn't watch the clouds either since it started raining a while ago.

I didn't even shrug as Ino took a seat next to me and sighed. "Shikamaru," she pouted. "This is awful! I can't find a dress. The whole party will be a total disaster! Everybody will laugh at me and -" Her voice broke and her eyes were dangerously teary.

Ino was quite a dramatic one.

"Ino, calm down. Nobody will laugh at you. You have plenty of dresses at home. Just pick your favorite one, you will look gorgeous and everything will be okay."

"I _can't_ choose one of my old dresses. I already wore them at least three times. That would be totally … totally … Agh, you don't understand it! You're a guy."

"You're right, I don't understand all this fuss about the party and the people from Suna."

"Shikamaru," she said and grabbed my hands. Oh, why did I had to ask? I should know Ino better by now. "Can't you just imagine how cool it would be if the princess of Suna and me will get best friends?" Her eyes started to sparkle and I know that it was now too late to stop her speech. That would be much too troublesome. "We could go to parties and banquettes and gala performances and fly to other metropolises and go shopping and all those stuffs! I mean, can't you just see it? Therefore I need a perfect dress. She should notice me right from the start. But if I'll wear a dress I already wore several times -" She sighed dramatically. "C'mon Shikamaru! You're a genius! You can't tell me you already figured out. I _need _to look good."

For a moment I looked just in Ino's eyes. Then I leaned in slowly.

"Ino," I said. "It's just some girl from Suna. Pick whatever dress you like."

"No!" she screamed. "Do you know what'll happen if I look better than her? She wouldn't talk to me then."

"I'm sure she -"

"And," she interrupted me. To tell the truth I didn't even know if she noticed that I said anything. "If I don't look good enough, she will just walk by, thinking I'm a good-for-nothing! I need the perfect dress."

I sighed and closed my eyes. If Ino wanted to be a drama queen, then I wasn't going to stop her. Way too much effort.

* * *

_Saturday_

The ballroom of the palace was decorated with the red banners from Konoha and green banners from Suna. Every glass french door was opened, leading to the gigantic balcony and thanks to the chilly air it wasn't too hot or stuffy. The candelabra were polished and filled the room with a soft light.

There were a lot of people. Everyone who has a name in Konoha was there. Some ambassadors from other countries were there, too. Reporters, a lot of paparazzi, several news channels and newspapers.

"Come on, Shikamaru," Chouji said and ate some of those mini-sandwiches that were served. "This is going to be fun. Aren't you excited?"

I yawned and scratched my head. That was everything Chouji got for an answer and he accepted that. Like I said, he was a good guy.

My mother made me wear my best black suit with a dark green tie. Chouji was dressed similar, but his tie was red. His long, light brown hair was pulled back and his cheek were slightly red. Chouji Akimichi was a descendant of a famous sumo wrestler family, and he definitely has such a figure. But don't you ever call him fat, believe me, that would be the last thing you do.

"Gosh, Chouji, can't you stop eating for a moment? You make me nervous," Ino said. After all she had chosen a light blue dress, with one strap that ended slightly over her knees. Fanatically she searched the crowd for a familiar face. "Did any one of you saw Sasuke? I heard he would come, too."

Chouji stopped eating and looked down on his sandwiches. Ino didn't noticed his discomfort though. Her head was filled with Sasuke. Sasuke Uchiha was the most wanted guy at ESPK and of course Ino wanted him too. He was one of those mysterious ones, that never talk or smile. His family basically controlled the executive branch of Konoha, but almost ten years ago there was a big massacre. He was the only one left, together with his older brother, Itachi, but they didn't get along. Rumors says that Sasuke blamed Itachi for the disaster.

Don't ask me why, but all this makes him even more attractive for all the females at school.

"Guys, hey!" We turned around and saw Naruto running toward us. Even now his blond, spiky hair couldn't be tamed and his blue eyes shone with excitement. Other than we, he had to wear the uniform for the royalties of Konoha. It was a bright red military jacket with golden ornaments and a white sash, dark blue trousers and black boots.

"Hey Naruto," Ino said and smiled. "You look good."

"This collar is so tight, I swear, I'm going to suffocate tonight." He tried to stretch the fabric, but it didn't worked.

Naruto caused a lot of trouble in his past. His parents died shortly after his birth and he was raised by the former teacher of the late king, Hiruzen Sarutobi. All those things he did was a compensation of all those strict rules he had to obey. His grades weren't that good, but he somehow managed to pass everything.

"Has anyone of you seen Sakura?" Naruto asked.

"This forehead-girl is coming, too?" Ino asked and grunted as Naruto nodded. Sakura Haruno was a daughter of a nobleman family too, just like me. Even though Ino and Sakura always acted like they hate each other, they are really close friends. The problem is, that they both like the same guy: Sasuke Uchiha. At the same time Naruto had a really big crush on Sakura. He asked her out several times, but she alsways turned him down.

"So, Naruto," Chouji said. "Did you meet the royalties from Suna yet? What are they like?"

"I didn't met them, they said I should wait until tonight. Something about formalities and tradition and all that stuff." He wagged his hand, but suddenly stopped. Slowly he leaned forward and whispered: "But I heard that they are actually assassins!"

"No way!" Ino squealed. She just loved gossip. "A princess that is a secret assassin? That's _so _cool!"

"I'm sure they aren't assassins," I said. "No royalty is an assassin."

"But they were trained to be one! I did some researched and I found several entries in blogs from students of Suna. They say that they are really dangerous and shot everyone who annoys them." Naruto looked deadly serious but I doubted that anything of this was true. Probably that were just some rumors from jealous students.

One of the servants approached, bowed to Naruto and whispered something to him. Naruto nodded and sent him away, before he turned towards us. "Have to leave now. They are coming." He was interrupted by Inos squeals. "See you on the stage." He gave us one of his widest grins, before he left.

"Oh, I'm so nervous," Ino said and started blabbering about thousand of things. I didn't listen – far too bothersome – but I was sure Chouji did.

Ten minutes later, the string quartet stopped and Naruto stepped up on a stage together with Hiruzen Sarutobi. He was old, his hair was gray and he had many crinkles. Since he wasn't a royalty he wasn't allowed to wear a uniform like Naruto, so he settled with a black suit and a black tie. Everybody stopped talking. Suddenly the atmosphere turned really stiff. Everybody wanted to see the king and his children.

"Dear citizens of Konoha, ambassadors from Kiri, Iwa and Kumo, I thank you all for your coming," Sarutobi said and smiled. Naruto wasn't good at talking in front of crowds and everybody knew that. "As you all know, we have special guest today and hold this celebration in their honor. Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome the king of Suna and his children, princess Temari, prince Kankuro and prince Gaara!"

The string quartet played the national anthem of Suna and everybody started to clap. The big double wing door at the end of the room opened, but there were too many people in between us and the door. Ino stood on her tiptoes to get a good look at them, but everything we saw was some brown hair.

"Can you see them?" Ino asked me and I shock my head. "Can you lift me up? I want to see them!"

"Just wait a minute, woman. They'll be at the stage then." That wasn't the answer Ino wanted to hear, but she just clapped even louder.

A few seconds later they arrived at the stage and got up. The king was tall, had brown hair and dark eyes. His expression was very stiff like his posture and he wore a dark blue wrinkle-free suit and a tie. Behind him were his sons – the older one, Kankuro was it I think, had the same hair and eyes, but he had weird purple paint in his face. The other one, Gaara, was smaller and slimmer, had red hair and green-blue eyes. Funnily enough he hadn't have any eyebrows. Like his brother he had paint on his face, too, but it was the Japanese word _love _in red. Both of them wore dark suits but no tie. The last one was -

For a moment I blinked, looking at the princess twice. She had a tan skin, golden hair and teal eyes. Her purple dress was strapless and was decorated with gems. The other jeweleries were pretty plain, in silver or gold.

She was the girl from yesterday, no doubt about that. The bossy woman in the coffee shop. But now her hair wasn't in those four pigtails, but it fell over her shoulders, slightly messy and curly.

Great, I just annoyed the princess of Suna.

At least I know now, why she looked familiar.

In the back was a bald man in a dark security suit. His arms were crossed behind his back and looked around, searching for possible dangers.

"Look at her dress," Ino said breathless. "Why doesn't look my dress like that? It's like she is sparkling in the light."

Sarutobi bowed at the royalties, who just nodded at him. The king shook hands with Naruto, who looked a bit paler now. He had every reason though. I can't say if they are really that annoyed or if it's a Suna-thing to look absolutely emotionless and serious. The king then turned to us, the audience. The string quartet stopped to play again.

"Thank you for your warm welcome," the king said. Even now he didn't looked any more relaxed. "We are really happy to be in Konoha and we are feeling honored that all of you came to see us. We are looking forward to have a pleasant stay." Everyone started to clap again, but now it was kinda forced.

Naruto went to the princes and shook their hands. He tried his best to look relaxed and happy, but it was hard if your counterpart looked like he wants to kill you. The princess didn't look any different as Naruto kissed her hand. The king talked to Sarutobi, who smiled.

"Do you think they ever smile?" Chouji asked me.

"They probably have to look so arrogant."

"Ohmygosh!" Ino squealed. Her nails cut in my flesh as she took my arm. "Naruto's going to introduce them! I'm going crazy! They are coming this way!"

Indeed, they were coming this way. Naruto was probably blabbering about something, judging from his expression. The princes and princess followed him, but they didn't look very excited. The bald man was a few feet behind them, not letting them out of his eyes for a moment. Naruto looked through the crowed. I guess he searched for someone he know.

Unfortunately we were the first one he saw.

His grin grew wider and he almost ran straight to us, obviously happy to finally found someone. Ino brushed through her hair, straighten her dress and brushed through her hair again. Chouji even set his plate away. I? Well, I didn't do anything. Except for figuring out what the princess would do if she recognize me. I'm afraid I didn't leave such a good impression on her.

"May I introduce you to my friends?" Naruto asked them as soon as he was near us. "These are Ino Yamanaka, Chouji Akimichi and Shikamaru Nara."

Chouji and I bowed, while Ino dropped a curtsy. The princes nodded, eying us a bit suspicious. Of this close distance I noticed, that the paint on their faces wasn't just some paint. They got tattoos. Weird.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," the younger prince, Gaara, said. His voice was cold and emotionless, but he didn't sounded forced. It was a weird mixture. "I hope, we will get along in the future."

"I'm sure you would," Naruto said, happy that there was some sort of conversation. We all just nodded, while Ino was almost jumping up and down. Her eyes were glued to princess Temari.

The princess, however, eyed something else.

Or someone else.

Me. To be exact.

Now, before you all go crazy, it wasn't a romantic glare, where the girls realizes that she is deeply in love with a guy she just met.

It was one of those glares that kill you right away. And then it will bury your corpus in the backyard, pretending not to know anything.

Well, I guess she recognized me. And she was still angry about the way I treated her.

"Shikamaru it was?" she asked dangerously quietly. Her brothers and even Naruto shot her a weird look, but she ignored it. I nodded and returned her glare, but mine was much more nonchalant. I didn't want to provoke her even more, especially in front of so many people.

"You, uhm, you know Shikamaru?" Naruto asked.

I remained silence, even though I felt Ino's and Chouji's questionnaire glares on me. It was her who spoke, so she could explain that. Slowly she opened her mouth.

"We -" She stopped, because the bald man had stepped next to hear, whispering something in her ear. For a moment she stood perfectly still, then she took a deep breath. Really slowly her lips turned into a smile. It didn't look fake, but there was no warmth behind it. "No, we didn't meet. I was just curious. It's nice to meet you all."

"It's such an honor to meet you!" Ino said. She grabbed Temari's hand. The princess' eyes darkened, but then there was her cold smile again. Maybe she wasn't a big fan of holding hands. "I read so much about you! You will attend ESPK too, right? I can show you around if you want! Or we could go shopping or -"

"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid my schedule is pretty crowded," Temari interrupted her and freed her hand out of Ino's grip.

"Oh, okay. We could go some other time then."

"I think we need to meet some other guests," the other prince, Kankuro, said. They all nodded at us – Temari shot me an especially dark glare – and then left together with the bald man. Naruto stood there for a second, watching them go, before he followed them.

"They are kinda scary, aren't they?" Chouji asked. "Did you see their tattoos? I didn't know you can have tattoos on such places when you are a prince."

"I heard that the princes are strange, but that?" Ino whispered and shook her head. Then she turned to me and eyed me suspicious. "What was that just right now?"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"That between you and the princess."

"She just said my name, that's all."

"She looked at you."

I rolled my eyes. "She looked at you, too."

"No, I mean she _looked _at you! Like she knows you or anything."

"Ino, seriously, I don't know what you mean. You heard her, we never met before. Where should have I met the princess of Suna?"

For a moment she just thought about it. I really hoped she didn't think that royalties will buy their coffee in normal shops, too. Otherwise it could all turned out to be really troublesome.

But Ino just shrugged and turned around, looking for the royalties, that were talking with an ambassador of Kiri. "I hope I can talk to her later. Don't you think we would just get along really great? I can totally see that."

I sighed and wished I could be at home in my bed. I didn't know what the bald man said or why Temari didn't said she knows me, but I'm not the one who would blow her cover. It'll save me a lot of trouble.

However I really hope I would never be alone with her. You know, just in case she really is an assassin.

* * *

**Temari and Shikamaru offically met! *squeals* So, we met a lot of new characters and in the next chapter (Temaris P.O.V. again) it'll be even more, e.g. Sakura and Sasuke. Also they will go to ESPK! **

**Thanks for all those reviews, I love reading them! **

**I'll try to update as soon as I can, I promise!**

**Hope you liked it :)**


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